How to Change name in India

At this current time, change of an individual’s name is not anymore an unusual happening. Changing the complete name, adding initials or inserting or deleting letters in the present name is a regular phenomenon in the country. Courtesy of our beliefs in Vaastu and numerology, studies show India has the most name changing population than any other country around the globe. Although the recent years have experienced a steady hike of name changing but the procedures are still outdated and lengthy and even requires a newspaper advertisement.

Though this process seems long but it is in fact very simple. Understanding the process of working, essential steps to be taken and acquiring the necessary documents is what you need to know and you are all good to go. Below mentioned are the easiest steps to be covered in order to change your name.

1. Submission of Affidavit– Take suggestion of the value of the stamp paper on which the affidavit has to be made from the notary. Fill in the required details which demand a justified reasoning of the change. After the printing of the affidavit on plain stamp paper, it requires signature of two witnesses of gazetted officer rank, always ensure that the signature is complimented with a rubber stamp.

2. Newspaper Publication– After you are done with the affidavit steps you need to feature an advertisement in the local newspaper. Publish a notification in the local newspaper stating that you have changed your name. Select one local newspaper, meaning the local language of the particular state and one English newspaper. For e.g. if you reside in West Bengal opt for newspapers like “Anandabajar Potrika” which is the local Bengali newspaper or “The Telegraph”, the English newspaper and further fill these fields.
1. Your new name
2. Your old name
3. Date of birth
4. Address

Here is small example of a name change advertisement in the newspaper
“I Soma Chatterjee residing at Kolkata have changed my name to Aparajita Chatterjee and will be known as Aprajita Chatterjee from here on in. I have submitted an affidavit to this effect which was signed by on.

3. Gazette Notification– This can be called as the final steps for the long process. Publishing of the gazette notification means that the name change procedure is legally complete. Submit a gazette notification by following this process. Acquire and carry a copy of ‘deed changing name’ from the department of publication. Support your application of name change by a justified reasoning application. Make sure to carry the original copies of the newspaper advertisements and also two attested photographs. Always keep essential legal documents like address and identity proof for uninterrupted proceedings. It is advisable to get a confirmation of the details to be sent from the Controller’s office of Publication. The amount of Gazette Notification usually varies from INR 700- INR 900. Gazette Notification plays a crucial role in the name changing process as the bank authorities always demand one from the client.

If one follows these steps carefully, the procedure will be sorted without much haste. For a future change of name in bank records, legal sector or renewing passport or license it is essentially important to always save all the documents.